If Talladega is the harbinger of chaos in NASCAR racing, then Texas Motor Speedway isn’t trailing too far behind. In fact, during the ongoing O’Reilly race at the Speedway, drivers are crashing like LEGO blocks right from the start of the race. And as one incident went far beyond acceptable, it would’ve ended badly for both drivers had the other person not stayed vigilant.
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On lap seven of the first stage during the O’Reilly race, Austin Green and Mason Maggio crashed into each other. It was the second contact in the opening seven laps of the race. However, what followed later was equally concerning.
As Maggio tried to get back on track, he sped up his car from behind the ambulance and nearly smashed into the pace car. The caution flags were out, and the pace car driver had to swerve his Corvette to escape Maggio.
And now just almost had a wreck with the pace car...
Another incident. Austin Green and Mason Maggio. Two wrecks in the opening seven laps of this race (only four of those green).
During caution, the NASCAR track is supposed to be driving a slower pace than usual, but it still has enough speed to gravely injure a driver if they get T-boned in a crash. Maggio should’ve been more careful about the same, and his spotter should’ve alerted him of the oncoming traffic.
His actions were irresponsible in the eyes of fans, who are now urging authorities to suspend him.
NASCAR fans request authority to step in and suspend Maggio
None of the fans were happy about the incident and had already been frustrated about the amount of chaos. As Jeff Gluck reported, “This is now the 15th straight O’Reilly race at Texas with at least seven cautions. The last one with fewer than that was spring 2017.”
So, when Maggio almost hit the pace car, after having had a similar incident with a tow truck, fans lost their patience.
One fan took a direct jab, saying, “The way things are going right now, the pace car will probably be leading the most laps…that is if it doesn’t get wrecked first.”
If Maggio had hit the pace car hard enough to damage it or to create a hazard on track, NASCAR would have typically thrown a caution or red flag. But if NASCAR determines the contact was intentional or avoidable, a driver could face a black flag, a pass-through penalty, post-race fines, points deductions, and even suspension if deemed egregious.
Earlier this year, Cleetus McFarland also nearly hit the pace car at Daytona in February, racing in the ARCA Menards Series. However, another, though not close, precedent comes from Kyle Busch at New Hampshire in 2021.
NASCAR officials opted against penalizing Busch for bumping the pace car during the Cup Series race, and he did not appear on the penalty report the following week. Competition officials had said his actions would be addressed, but ultimately, no action was taken, which was proof enough that NASCAR has discretion and doesn’t automatically penalize. So, Maggio will not be suspended.
Still, fans wanted one thing: “Park & suspend both of them, spotter and driver.”
Another set of fans couldn’t help but be reminded of a hilarious story posted by one of the drivers some days ago.
“That moon phase couldn’t be more wrong this weekend. Everyone fell for it in the O’Reilly series,” one fan made a witty remark.
Good thing the pace car driver is a wheelman 😅
Well, Noah Gragson had a wild theory about the moon phase affecting racing in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series. While claiming that NASCAR apparently takes it very seriously, Gragson said:
“Something to do with like the gravitational pull. Like we have to adjust the car and raise the ride heights because of the gravitational pull, like the moon phase; it just puts more load into the car, and then we have more grip.”
As for Mason Maggio, he is still racing, and NASCAR has not asked him to park his car as a punishment yet. They haven’t issued any formal warning to him about the same. Still, the incident is sure to be a hot debate after the race ends in Texas.
